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Mountain View Sets Tax Collector Pay

By Ted Brewster

By law, elected tax collectors in Pennsylvania have their compensation established early in the year of their (re-)election, most of them for 4-year terms. So it was that the Mountain View School Board, at its meeting on February 3rd, approved a compensation agreement for the district's 7 collectors of property, per-capita and occupation taxes for the period January 1, 2026-December 31, 2029. (Earned income taxes and delinquencies are handled otherwise.) According to Board President Jason Richmond, there was no change in the rate schedule.

Collectors are paid $2.50 for each bill sent out, and $5.00 for each bill collected; extra installment bills collected are paid at the rate of $2.00 each. They get $2.00 for each bill deemed uncollectable. They are paid a commission of 5% for collecting occupation and per-capita tax bills, and $1.00 for such bills that are uncollectible. In addition, tax collectors are each guaranteed a minimum compensation of $2,000 per year.

As is customary, the meeting opened with a report from the Student Council liaison to the Board, this time Kylie Barhite sitting in for Brooklyn Anderson. (That was okay, because High School Principal Mark Lemoncelli was also standing in for Superintendent Michael Elia, who was in Nashville for some reason.)

Ms. Barhite (who took some ribbing as a daughter of Board member Michael Barhite) ran down a 4-page list of activities in the schools, whose highlights included:

  • A summary of the Student Council's attendance at the National Student Council Conference in Chicago during which they met counterparts from all over the world.

  • The spring play will be "The Addams Family," to be presented March 7-9; some 32 students are involved in the production, with scenery provided by "Mrs. Lomabardi and her talented art department."

  • Senior yearbook ads are being accepted until the end of February.

  • "Culture Shock" classes heard from Harold Gary, 103 years young, who served as a tail gunner in a bomber patrol group escorting ships across the Atlantic during World War II.  Former athletic director (and current tax collector for Clifford Township), the always active Jan Price was instrumental in Mr. Gary's appearance. Mr. Lemoncelli remarked on the moving presentation.

The treasurer's report for the month of January showed stability, with revenues nearly matching expenditures, leaving a balance in the general fund just under $1 million lower than at the end of December. The Board approved a bill list totaling almost $1.2 million. Of that amount, about half was for health care. More than $350,000 was spent on charter schools. The Board also approved a request for a teacher, a nurse and 30 students to take a trip to the FBLA (Future Business Leaders of America) State Leadership Conference in April in Hershey for a total cost of over $12,000.

This chilly winter has seen the burning of some 67 tons of wood chips so far to heat the schools. According to Maintenance Supervisor Bob Taylor, that would be the equivalent of 148,000 gallons of fuel oil at a cost of over $400,000.

The Board approved a service agreement with Luzerne Intermediate Unit, which provides internet connectivity to Mountain View.

The Board promoted Stacy Decker from her para-professional job to Special Education Teacher. Ms. Decker is the a daughter-in-law of Board member Ken Decker (who abstained on the vote). Dane Barhite will be moving from life skills to the general education cadre.

Dr. Lemoncelli described to the Board a new program that pairs high school students with 7th graders who are having academic or behavioral issues. He also described some changes to the high school Program of Studies that the Board approved. He said that early approval would give his staff more time to deal with scheduling changes for the next school year.

The Mountain View School Board is scheduled to meet next on Monday, March 3, 2025 beginning at 7:00pm in the Zick Board Room in the Elementary School building.

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Sheriff Benedict Plans Retirement

Susquehanna County Sheriff Lance Benedict announces that he will not be seeking election to a seventh term. Benedict was first elected in 2001 and has been serving as the Sheriff for the past 24 years. He will finish out his sixth term in the office, which runs through the swearing in of a new sheriff on Jan. 3, 2026.

Sheriff Benedict said, "It has been a true honor and my distinct privilege to serve the residents of Susquehanna County as the Sheriff over the past two and one-half decades. Over those years, I have worked with many wonderful members of the judicial system, the law enforcement community and elected officials. I have worked alongside the committed and extraordinary staff of the Sheriff's Department – both past and present.

During his tenure as the Sheriff of Susquehanna County, Benedict said his main goal was to bring agencies together as he acted as a liaison between all law enforcement professionals at work in the county. In addition to his duties as the sheriff, Benedict serves as the Chairman of the Susquehanna County Prison Board. He was instrumental in making crisis intervention training and mental health first aid available to the sheriff department's deputies. He has been honored with Distinguished Citizen awards from several organizations and was key in launching National Night Out events in Susquehanna County.

"It's been all about building partnerships and being a team player," Benedict said.

The Susquehanna County Sheriff's Department processes over 2,000 concealed carry permits each year, provides prisoner transport and security to the courts – including the courthouse and magisterial district judge offices. The office is responsible for serving warrants, protection from abuse orders, as well as providing civil action process service.

"I'm looking forward to the next chapter in my life," Benedict said. His retirement plans include hunting, fishing and spending more time with family.

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Shoes To Fill At Blue Ridge Cafeteria

By Ted Brewster

Linda Cole-Koloski has managed food service with distinction at the Blue Ridge schools for a very long time. Keeping up with government regulations, acquiring access to free and low cost supplies, and skillfully managing family cafeteria accounts, her operation has placed few demands on the district general fund budget. She will retire at the end of June, having served superb meals at minimal cost during the school year as well as through the district's summer programs. The School Board accepted her intent to retire with regret at its meeting on February 4th.

The Board went on to hire Ms. Cole-Koloski's replacement, Nicholas Eitutis, who will begin under her tutelage on February 10th. He agreed that he will be trying to fill some very big shoes.

As is their custom, the Board opened the meeting by recognizing some of its special charges. In the absence of the various principals, Director of Curriculum & Instruction Matthew Nebzydoski did the introductions, as follows:

  • 5th-grader Sophie Miller was singled out with her classmate Dennon Ralston for kindness. She likes her ELA (English Language Arts) classes, and hopes to become a teacher. Mr. Ralson also likes ELA, but hopes for a professional basketball career – or maybe in video games.
  • Isabella Montague was chosen for 8th-grade Student of the Month. A member of the National Junior Honor Society, she is especially passionate about archery.
  • Mr. Nebz named Antonio Slater Middle School Athlete of the Month, in part because of the way he gave special attention to a special needs athlete during a competition. "A.J." has since transferred out of Blue Ridge.

  • Ally Marvin was chosen for Senior Recognition for the month of January. Ms. Marvin may attend Marywood; she looks to a career in aviation or criminology.

  • Janna Weed spends a lot of her time singing, and was recognized as Senior Artist of the Month for January.

  • Andrew Kowalewski, aside from being the student representative to the School Board, is active in a variety of sports, for which reason he couldn't attend the meeting at which he was named Senior Athlete of the Month for January. He hopes to attend Penn State to study animal science with a goal of veterinary medicine.

  • Logan Haley and Bruce O'Dell, Blue Ridge students attending the Susquehanna County Career & Technology Center, are recognized for the month of December. Mr. Haley is an active firefighter with the Great Bend Hose Company. Mr. O'Dell studies welding, works at Armetta's, and has already been offered a job after graduation.

Settling on a compensation package for the district's 6 tax collectors, the Board approved a memorandum of understanding (MOU) that simplifies their remuneration, and provides for modest increases over the 4-year term of the agreement. The tax collectors will be paid a flat $6.00 for each tax bill in 2026, when their new terms begin following the November election. Thereafter, the rate will increase by about 18 cents per bill each year, to $6.56 in 2029. The district will contract with Government Software Services to print and mail the initial bills in a trifold arrangement, to allow for installment payments. The district will provide the tax collectors with envelopes and stamps for subsequent mailings as needed. The only tax collector present at the meeting, Karen Gudykunst, seemed satisfied, saying that the package was "fair" and simplified the reporting paperwork. Blue Ridge tax collectors handle only property taxes; the Blue Ridge district does not impose the "nuisance" per-capita or occupation taxes.

Other items on the agenda:

  • The Board approved a calendar for the 2025-2026 school year. Classes will begin on August 27, 2025, the Wednesday following the Harford Fair. Classes will end on Friday, June 5, 2026, with graduation following a week later, on Friday, June 12, 2026. Details within the calendar tend to change from time to time, particularly with respect to snow days.

  • The Board accepted the intent to retire of Speech Language Pathologist Serafina McFadden at the end of the current school year.

  • The Board approved a letter of agreement with The Meadows Psychiatric Center covering the next 3 school years. The Meadows, in Centre Hall, Pennsylvania, provides in-patient psychiatric and behavioral services, with educational support at a rate of $100 per day, as needed.

  • The Board approved an agreement with Beacon Specialized Living of Clarks Summit for the next school year. Beacon provides life-skills support as needed.

  • The Board approved the budget of the Northeastern Educational Intermediate Unit (NEIU #19) for the next fiscal year. The Board's representative to the NEIU, Christina Cosmello, said that the new budget does not call for any increase in Blue Ridge's contribution.

  • Leigha McCain was present to accept the Board's welcome as a new Para-educator in the Elementary School.

In general discussion, Superintendent Matthew Button reported on progress regarding the designation of part of School Road as a "School Zone" that is hoped will alleviate some of the traffic problems at the end of each school day. He will be having discussions with New Milford Township officials, but noted that any effect of the designation will depend on law enforcement.

Mr. Button also reported on the development of a mailing to solicit contributions to a scholarship fund to be managed by the Susquehanna County Community Foundation that could eventually total $50,000 or more. Coterra Energy is offering a grant of $25,000 that will require a local community match of an equal amount. The first mailing will be to district taxpayer households. So check your mail and give generously.

Budget season begins this month, with a Finance Committee meeting on the 24th. Blue Ridge spends upwards of $24 million a year. You don't want to miss the action.

Otherwise, the next scheduled Board meeting will be on Monday, March 3, 2025. Meetings generally begin at 7:00pm in the cafeteria in the Elementary School. This time there was creamy potato soup on offer; will Mr. Eitutis continue the tradition?

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Great Bend Police On Life Support

By Ted Brewster

The January meeting was canceled for lack of a quorum, so when the Great Bend Borough Council gathered on February 6th, they accepted the resignations of the last two officers of their police force. But, having killed off one "Municipal Police Commission" 30 years ago, members are reluctant to call an end to another one, however moribund. There was mention of bringing back County Deputy Sheriff and former Great Bend Police Chief Jon Record for a few hours a month, to what end is uncertain. Curiously, although the police department no longer has any personnel, the Borough's solicitor, Frank O'Connor, called an executive session that he later said focused on police department personnel.

The glacial pace of code enforcement continues with a sheriff's sale of the "Pearson/Freeman" property at 279 Main Street scheduled for March 25th. Should no buyer appear to redeem at least the $40,000 owed to Great Bend, the Borough would become the new owner of the property. Council would then presumably proceed to demolish the building, but with what funds is uncertain.

Borough Secretary Sheila Guinan reminded the assembled officials that the several of them who will be up for (re-)election this year (should they choose to run) will need to start gathering petition signatures on February 18 for the primary on May 20. Affected are Mayor Jim Riecke, Tax Collector Danielle Mills, and Council members Mike Crook, Ben Franks, Liz Landes and Matt Post. Council was also asked to sign a "Municipal/Federal Government Election Polling Place Agreement," so that the Borough building can become an official polling place. It was noted that, for all the years that the building has been used as a polling place, this is only the second time such an agreement has been required.

Liz Landes wasn't physically present at the meeting, but she did leave notice of two upcoming town parties. A skating party is scheduled for 1:00-3:00pm on Saturday, February 15. Given the way winter has been so far, the ice in Wiegand Memorial Park should be just about right. Skates will be provided for those without; snacks, too.

Ms. Landes and her minions are already planning for what is now being called Wiegand Memorial Park Day, aka the traditional Community Day. Save the date: July 19, 2025.

It was a short meeting for this Council, barely a half hour. The next one is scheduled for Thursday, March 6, 2025, beginning at 7:00pm in the Borough building at Elizabeth & Franklin Streets.

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